Urban Meyer makes prediction on Texas vs. Kansas

Saturday afternoon’s matchup between the No. 3 Texas Longhorns and No. 24 Kansas Jayhawks will be one of the four showdowns between top-25 teams. The Longhorns and their headman, Steve Sarkisian, will host the Jahawks, a program that has been a thorn in their side since hiring Lance Leipold as head coach.

Ahead of Week 5’s slate of games, national championship-winning head coach at Florida and Ohio State, Urban Meyer, gave us his take on the Big 12 powerhouse showdown during Urban’s Take with Tim May.

“Yeah, I think the coach of Kansas is phenomenal,” said Meyer. I think, you know, even the initial impact he’s made. You don’t think of Kansas as the old Kansas anymore. I certainly don’t. I think they’re a competitor in the Big 12. Before, you just thought they were a mess. And that quarterback; we did a special on him last year on Big Noon.

Leipold took over the reins of the Kansas football program in 2021 after the institution parted ways with Les Miles. There, in his inaugural season, the new Jayhawks headman gave a glimpse of things to come, shocking Texas with a 57-56 victory in Austin. The Longhorns got their revenge last season to the tune of 55-14. Still, this Texas team is “different” than the ones Kansas and quarterback Jalon Daniels faced in prior seasons, according to Meyer.

“But this is a whole different Texas. This is a whole different deal, man. This is one of the most talented rosters in college football. They’re well coached, and they went to Tuscaloosa and, and beat, didn’t upset, they beat Alabama. I have him as my number one team in America.

“I think they beat Kansas,” said Meyer. “I’m not taking away from Kansas. I just like Lawrence, too. I’ve been there a couple of times. I just never quite understood why Lawrence, Kansas can’t, can’t have a good quality football team. And now they have a good quality football coach. So I hope this coach stays there because he’s really doing a great job there.”

Without a doubt, Kansas football looks brighter under Leipold’s leadership than it has in recent years. But they are facing a Texas team that is further along in terms of talent. Sarkisian has been a magician for Texas on the recruiting trail and in acquiring talent out of the transfer portal.

It’s not just getting the talent Sarkisian has excelled at; it’s putting it together and making it a cohesive unit on the field. The Longhorns handed the Crimson Tide their first home loss since Joe Burrow, and LSU took them down in 2019.

Both programs are trending in the right direction with sound coaching at the helm. But with the talent at Texas, which is home to the top QB rectruit in the 2021 class, Quinn Ewers, and the 2023 class, Arch Manning, that gap might be too much for the Jayhawks to overcome. And for that, Meyer gives the nod to Texas come Saturday afternoon.